Coming full circle on Uvalde is there a purpose?
By Phyllis King
From Sikh Gurdwara to Sandy Hook to Uvalde, mass shootings have become commonplace in the United States of America. The grief and horror that comes with senseless carnage is a gut punch that draws blood and tears for many that never dry.
I can think of no harsher experience for a human being than to watch innocent children and their teachers get murdered. Especially in a school setting where safety is paramount, and the entire objective is to nurture young hearts and minds. To see the promise of their lives cut short violently and callously is traumatic for the strongest of hearts and those with the deepest spiritual awareness.
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How do we come to terms with such tragedy? How can we digest this kind of trauma? Is it even possible to garner any value it may have in the grand scheme of life?
These are difficult questions. We were made for this and capable of creating a path that will provide answers that heal. Life is not intended to be easy. All of us know that is the case. Each person has trauma and tragedy in their life.
When the collective culture mirrors back to us the limitations of our belief systems in a manner that is so horrific, what do we do with that? It can be paralyzing. That is the one thing we cannot allow to happen. There are steps to digesting shock and trauma that can help us come full circle with a sense of promise and optimism for the future.
First, we must feel the grief of the moment. There is no correct way to grieve. It may be alone or with others. The more we come together, the faster we will heal. The instance of shared experience is a powerful healer.
Consider group and community activities, even with strangers. Twenty-one years ago, I delivered twins at childbirth who died. It was one of the most profound experiences of my life. The grief was overwhelming. So, I talked and cried to a great therapist. I talked and cried to my loving friends and family. Yet, it was only when I connected with a stranger who had had the same experience did I begin to feel better. Shared experience is a powerful healer.
Next, from grief, we may have rage. We must choose how best to direct this energy. Left undirected, we may misuse the power of rage. That is an important distinction. Rage and anger are energies we can use to produce new results, often rapidly. The intention we set using our rage is important in how we progress. Rage can help us take action that is both productive and expedient. Use it for that purpose.
Collective atrocities do not happen in a vacuum. They occur with the consent of the collective. Whether a tragedy is individual or in a city or a nation, it is an opportunity for every being to awaken to their power to make a difference.
When we feel an injustice has been perpetrated, we can choose to move in the direction of change. No movement maintains the status quo. We must remember that no matter how large a problem or issue may seem change is always possible. Just as tragedy can occur in the blink of an eye so can too can grace occur. Know and trust that there are two sides to that coin. Tragedy can occur instantaneously, so to can blessings occur. Never forget that.
With the courage we find to grieve, and the wisdom we access to direct our rage productively we can reimagine the future. We can align with views and ideas that will influence outcomes and create new beginnings. It is always possible to change the future. As we digest our grief and manage our rage, we can create certainty that tragedy does not have to be our truth or our experience.
We are spiritual beings having a human experience. Experience is the operative word. Masters and avatars through history have taught us that the soul wants to experience. It is not the experience itself that has meaning. It is who we become because of the experience that has value. Through experience, we learn who we are. Without the negative, we cannot fully know the positive. We need contrast. Enlightened masters have also taught us that once we understand the difference between pain and joy, we then have free will to choose which reality we want to experience the most and engage accordingly.
We must never underestimate the power of our purpose, our intention, and our divinity. If we do, we render ourselves powerless to the status quo. Life is not about learning as much as it is about remembering. The more we remember, moment to moment, day by day, that we are divine creative
beings, the more we will exercise our free will to create outcomes that match the love and purity in our hearts. When we do not acknowledge our divinity as creative beings, we become like a turtle lying on its back struggling to turn itself over. It can be done, but it is difficult. We have so much more available to us if we will only awaken and remember who we are.
Embrace the human experience. Mine the gold of the moment, not just as a tragedy but as an opportunity to awaken as a more fully realized spiritual being – to recognize our power. We can direct our energy to effect incredible and even miraculous change. It is possible. It is what we came here to master.
Until we recognize we are divine we will continue to create experiences that force us to ask the most important question we ever ask ourselves, which is “Who am I?”
Am I divine, or am I just flesh and bones? It is when we grasp that we are divine, and live from divinity that everything comes into focus. We empower ourselves to create the benevolent outcomes we desire.
This is the purpose of tragedy and trauma, to move us toward ourselves, to help us recognize who we truly are, and then to take charge of that power in the most fulfilling way.
Think of the beautiful children and teachers who gave their physical life in Uvalde. These are the truest form of missionaries, in my view. The senseless Tragedy of Uvalde is a reminder for us to live life each and every day in love.
Children are precious, fragile, and impressionable. As adults, we must all do our part to make sure we always choose love, not hate, and to show acceptance, and compassion. If you believe that in any part, you empower yourself to honor their sacrifice and recognize it as a great opportunity to create a planet and a society motivated by love rather than fear.
The overpowering grief that comes when we lose a loved one, and specifically a child, through a heinous act is a trauma that can last a lifetime. We are indelibly scarred. It is a burden many cannot endure. There is no set answer for relief. We can only hope that honoring the beauty of the lost life will sustain us until a new day can dawn. Perhaps in that hope, those grieving will awaken one morning without a flood of tears and heartbreak resting on their chest where love once resided. For today, survive. Today, live to see another sunrise. That is enough.
Special thanks to:
Editing: Dina Morrone
Photography by: Jennifer McCarren
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